CHAPTER 16:

INVASION

In hindsight, I believe the USJ invasion had one primary purpose. True, there were plenty of secondary purposes. Firstly, they hoped to kill All Might, as well as many teachers and students as they could. Secondly, by staging an invasion and possibly killing a number of their charges, they hoped to wound the pride of UA, which had stood as a bastion of heroism.

But the primary reason? It was twofold. It was All for One announcing to those in the know that he was still alive, his way of aping All Might's famous catchcry and roaring, I AM HERE! And it was All for One showing off his successor, Tomura Shigaraki, a sort of debutante ball as it were.

That the USJ invasion was a failure in that there were no casualties amongst the students and teachers mattered little. Its primary purpose had been achieved. The seeds of fear had been planted, ready to grow and bear bitter fruit…

After getting onto the bus, Izuku tried not to bounce with excitement. All Might (he tried not to think of him as Toshinori, if only to prevent himself from potentially blurting out his secret), Aizawa and Thirteen, all teaching him on the same day? After the heavy discussion yesterday, he felt that this was the perfect antidote. Leaving aside the fact that the rescue training was sure to be exciting, he was also sure this was a part of Heroic Studies Bakugou would suck balls at. His lack of utility for his Quirk (unless it was for reaching hard-to-reach places) and his lack of altruism would hamper his chances.

He happened to be sitting next to Tsuyu Asui on the bus as it was driven to the outskirts of the UA complex. The frog-like girl was cute and adorable, but her rather stoic, unblinking expression was a little unnerving. And then, she spoke. "You know, Midoriya, I speak my mind, ribbit."

"…Umm, and what's that, Asui?"

"…Call me Tsuyu. And your Quirk is weird. I mean…we saw you teleport, you can manifest an energy sword with it…you can use telekinesis, and also call upon the elements, if what you did to Iida and Tokoyami is any indication."

Izuku flinched. Tsuyu, despite her odd looks, was clearly perceptive and intelligent. "…It's complicated." After a moment, he decided to tell a version of the truth. "It's actually a bit like Tokoyami's Quirk, Dark Shadow. The Soul Reaver is bound to me in a symbiotic relationship, and it came with these abilities already."

"Is it alive like Dark Shadow?" Tokoyami asked, intrigued.

"Sort of. In fact…the Soul Reaver is comprised of two souls from long ago."

Taking that as their cue, Raziel and Ariel appeared. "Whoa, what the hell?!" yelped Kirishima.

"Greetings, Class 1-A," Ariel said. "I am Ariel, former Balance Guardian. And this is Raziel, a former bearer of the Soul Reaver."

"…You have a pair of revenants bound to you," Tokoyami said flatly. "Intriguing."

"The abilities the Soul Reaver has are those I gained in life," Raziel said. "Izuku is a worthy bearer of the blade."

"Bullshit," Bakugou sneered.

"You'll never become a popular Pro-Hero if you have such an attitude and a scatological mouth, Bakugou," Tsuyu remarked.

"Fuck off, frog-bitch!" Bakugou retorted. "Anyway, how many people here know what 'scatological' means? I mean aside from you, me, and Deku?!"

"I rest my case," Tsuyu remarked, pointing to Bakugou and poking her tongue out facetiously.

"Yeah, kind of hard to be a popular Pro-Hero when you've got the mouth of a sailor and the personality of a burning toxic waste dump," Kaminari remarked casually.

"Come over here and say that, Pikachu! You'll be burning toxic waste!"

The argument continued, only for Aizawa to say, "Settle down. We're nearly there…"

The USJ was like a vast domed enclosure including all kinds of disaster simulations. It reminded Izuku somewhat of the Universal Studios Japan studio tour, looking like film sets of disaster films. Of course, he was trying hard not to geek out over the fact that Thirteen was here to teach them, though Ochako did so. Thirteen, clad in a bulky spacesuit, was perhaps the definition of a rescue-oriented Pro-Hero.

However, when Aizawa asked Thirteen where All Might was, Izuku was intrigued. While he didn't hear the quiet discussion that ensued, he wondered if All Might had neared his limit for the day. He did see a few news items on the morning news before heading to UA for the day. He found himself considering it, listening to Thirteen's opening speech with half an ear. He was glad his classmates seemed accepting of Ariel and Raziel, and the explanation he gave, though he could see that Bakugou was champing at the bit to reveal what happened that day with the mugger.

Suddenly, a palpable feeling of malice filled the air, and down in the plaza below the entrance area they were in, a massive, dark purple mass of mist was appearing. A bizarre figure stepped through, a lanky figure covered in severed hands, including one covering his face. Instantly, he summoned the Soul Reaver, even as more figures moved out of the dark mist, which itself seemed to have a pair of glowing yellow eyes, peering at them balefully. "…Mr Aizawa…" he began. "Those are real Villains, aren't they?"

Aizawa nodded. "Form a group, and don't move," he said, his usual apathetic tones replaced with an authoritative one, filled with urgency.

The deep, guttural but cultured tones of what seemed to be the mist entity wafted up to them. "…Eraserhead and Thirteen…but…All Might…is he?"

A raspier voice snarled, coming from the lanky young man with the hands covering his body. "Damn! But…look up there…do you reckon we can trigger the encounter by killing off some kiddy mooks?"

"…So the infiltration that happened the other day was the doing of these ones," Aizawa remarked.

Izuku grimaced, though he found his eyes drawn in particular to one of the bulkier Villains standing near the hand-covered guy. Its skin was as black as pitch, its head vaguely avian, with an exposed brain, and bulging, soulless eyes that, combined with the perpetual rictus of the beak-like mouth, gave it an utterly disturbing air. In fact, he doubted that was a Mutant-style Quirk. Izuku already believed that that thing had been engineered somehow. "Mr Aizawa…the one with the exposed brain…I think that's one of the most dangerous ones."

Aizawa nodded. They heard a discussion between Momo and Thirteen about how the intruder alarms weren't working. Izuku looked over to Iida. While theoretically, Izuku could use the Spectral Realm to shift and travel to the UA compound in what was an instant for the Material Realm, he was worried he could encounter Sluagh or even worse along the way. The malevolent chuckling of Kain and Raziel's sworn enemy didn't help matters. However, Tenya was the fastest of them. If he could get out, and act as a messenger…

"Mr Aizawa…I can pick off some of them from afar with the Soul Reaver's projectile," Izuku said quietly as the teacher put on his goggles. "If I can do that safely without hitting you, should I?"

"As long as you don't draw too much attention to yourself," Aizawa conceded.

"Are you sure you'll be all right facing them? If I recall, you specialise in ambush and stealth tactics."

"Just because I specialise in them doesn't mean it's the only trick up my sleeve. You of all people should know that any Hero worth their salt isn't a one-trick pony. Stay here with Thirteen. If you feel you can snipe them safely, do so, but try not to draw too much attention to yourself. Protecting your fellow students is the priority."

After confirming with Kaminari and Thirteen that they couldn't contact the outside with their respective communicators, Aizawa leapt down the stairs. The first Villains to confront him regretted it, as he soon had them beaten with a ridiculously skilful display of his capture weapons and, presumably, his Quirk. Izuku couldn't help but feel his admiration of the Underground Hero go up several notches. Aizawa certainly put his money where his mouth was in terms of ensuring he had a variety of combat skills on top of his Quirk and capture weapons. And there was the fact that he was risking his life to save his students.

Still, Izuku picked his targets, and began firing projectiles from the Soul Reaver, the balls of energy sending Villains flying, though those were mostly concussive blasts. He shot a particularly high-powered one at the hulking creature with the exposed brain on a hunch. The projectile blew out a small but noticeable chunk of the creature's torso, a wound that was serious if not potentially lethal…but it soon healed over.

Shit, that thing has a healing Quirk of some sort. And yet…if I didn't know any better, it also has some sort of super-strength Quirk, he mused. Two Quirks are usually impossible…but if that thing has been bioengineered…

Stopping his barrage, Izuku said, "Thirteen, I'm going to shift Iida out of here. He can run to the USJ and alert those here. I'll be back shortly."

"I can't just abandon you!" Tenya protested.

"We need backup now!" Izuku said, before dashing to Tenya, and, grabbing him, they went for the door, opening it, before shifting to the Spectral Realm.

They dashed through the landscape, until Ariel activated a portal. "Okay, now run!" Izuku yelled as they shifted back.

Tenya nodded, before dashing away. "I'll be back!" he yelled over his shoulder.

Izuku quickly fished out his mobile, and found that it was working. In quick succession, he sent off text messages to Himiko, Hitoshi, and Janos about the invasion. Then, he rushed back into the USJ, only to find himself facing the black mist entity, though its attention was on the other students. He also noticed what looked like a metal collar, roughly where the neck should be. "…Should forgive our temerity, but I am Kurogiri of the League of Villains. We have come to smother the beacon fire that is All Might. Unfortunately, it seems he is not…hmm?" Kurogiri turned, his glowing eyes facing Izuku. "So, that's where you went to? But there was another."

"Escaped, to go warn the others," Izuku said.

"And yet, you came back in, presumably to help your classmates. I do not know whether to consider that foolish or brave."

"And yet, here you are, trying to take on All Might," Izuku said, his words braver than he felt. But maybe, just maybe, if he could get this Kurogiri to talk, he could learn more about the plans of this League of Villains. And maybe drop his guard. "Most people would call that insane…but that thing with the exposed brain…that's your trump card, isn't it?"

"…You see altogether too much, boy," Kurogiri remarked.

Before Izuku could reply, both Bakugou and Kirishima attacked Kurogiri, the former screaming his habitual "DIE!" To give them credit where it was due, they targeted the collar, but Kurogiri dodged. Izuku, however, took advantage, and grasped Kurogiri's collar with telekinesis, before flinging him away.

I felt that, Izuku thought. He actually has a physical body beneath all that dark mist, I could feel that with the telekinesis. But…there's something wrong about him. That collar thing, it's more than decoration. Some sort of restraint? Life-support?

But before he could react, Kurogiri vanished into a portal…and appeared behind Izuku. "You really are the best of the best Pro-Hero academies have to offer…but I'm afraid your potential will have to be extinguished here and now. Now, SCATTER, SUFFER AND DIE!"

With that, a blast of the black mist enveloped the students, though it missed Izuku as he dived to the side, pulling Ochako away. However, he did notice a distinct lack of most of the other students. Aside from himself, Ochako, Hanta Sero and Rikido Sato, they were gone, and the only other person was an astonished Thirteen. "No…no no no no…what the hell did you do to them?" After a moment, he facepalmed. "Stupid question. You teleported them elsewhere in the USJ, didn't you?"

"Of course," Kurogiri remarked.

Izuku gritted his teeth. "It's not enough to want to kill All Might," he growled, feeling a surge of anger. "You want to kill my classmates too. Children, who haven't even fought Villains yet."

"And yet, I can feel that surge of killing intent inside you," Kurogiri remarked. "For such a timid little child, you are willing to kill. You've done it before. You don't want to, and yet, that rage is unmistakeable."

"Midoriya! Out of the way!" Thirteen yelled, opening up the finger of one of her gloves.

"Thirteen, don't!" Izuku yelled when he realised something. "He can open up a portal behind you, you'll get sucked up by your own Quirk!"

Thirteen started, before muttering, "Right…unless you just gave him the idea."

"No, I considered it the moment you intended to attack, Thirteen," Kurogiri said, before Izuku grabbed him once more with telekinesis, and slammed him into a wall.

"You've a real body beneath that," Izuku said. "You're not just a formless mass. And you've just condemned my classmates to die. I'm not happy."

"IZUKU! LOOK OUT!"

Izuku's eyes widened at Ochako's warning, and he dived away as the hulking monster with the exposed brain charged up the stairs, Izuku's telekinesis releasing Kurogiri. The creature picked up Kurogiri. "…Did Shigaraki send you to help me, Nomu?" The creature nodded. "Very well. Take me down there. I need to let him know that one of the students has escaped."

The Nomu (Izuku knew this was a title more than a name, and ironically for a creature with an exposed brain, 'Nomu' meant 'brainless' or 'mindless') leapt away. "…What was that thing?" Ochako asked.

"…I think it's something that was bioengineered. I don't think I've seen anyone with a Quirk that exposes their brain like that," Izuku said, before he looked down into the plaza. Aizawa was still going strong, but Izuku knew that he was reaching his limits, and the Nomu would tip the scales.

Izuku came to a decision. Without warning, he shifted into the Spectral Realm, and headed down the stairs. It was probably very stupid and reckless, what he was doing, but he needed to help his teacher even the odds, and if he tried going down there in the Material Realm, Thirteen would try to stop him. Besides, these bastards had condemned his classmates to die. He might not be able to help them, but he could do what he can.

A portal back into the Material Realm in the plaza, and he was right in the thick of the Villains. "Mr Aizawa! COVER YOUR EYES!"

Aizawa covered his eyes briefly with an arm, while on all sides, the Villains stared in bemusement. "LIGHT GLYPH!" Izuku yelled, and a shockwave of brilliant light blasted out from him. Wasting little time, he used the Rope Trick Quirk to begin tying up the Villains, including the one covered in hands.

The moment the ropes wrapped around him, the Villain gave him a look from behind the hand on his face. "Bitch, please," he sneered. One of his hands touched the rope, and it crumbled away. "Sniping with an energy sword, telekinesis, a massive flashbang…what kind of fucking cheat code did you use?"

"Konami, naturally," Izuku snarked, bringing himself closer to Aizawa. He should be able to manage one last shift into the Spectral Realm before he had to recover, and he could use it to give his teacher a breather, even if only briefly.

The hand-covered Villain stared at him briefly, before chuckling. "Okay…for a meddling little brat, that was kind of funny. But…"

There was a sudden crash from the top of the stairs. And then, Izuku heard a very welcome voice. "THERE'S NO NEED TO FEAR! FOR WE ARE HERE!"

We? Izuku thought, until a certain winged figure swooped down, carrying All Might in his arms. Janos Audron was present, like an Angel of Mercy. Though given the glare his golden eyes were giving the gathered Villains, he seemed more like an Angel of Death.

All Might was, if anything, even more terrifying. Instead of his usual wide smile, what he wore on his face was like a parody of it, a furious snarl that seemed like a grotesque mutation of his smile. Still, Izuku knew he shouldn't be scared. Rather, it was the Villains who should be.

And yet, Tomura was smirking behind his hand-like mask. "Ah, All Might, and Nephilim…we get a bonus battle to boot…"

CHAPTER 16 ANNOTATIONS:

So, there you have it, the USJ invasion, but going somewhat differently to canon. Don't worry, Tsuyu and Mineta are fine: they have Kaminari with them to act as a taser to the Flood Zone. Unfortunately, Shigaraki noticed Kurogiri being attacked, so he sent the Nomu to retrieve him before Izuku could kill him.

As for Janos Audron and All Might getting there early, well, Izuku had the good sense to text Janos. Janos, being on campus, was actually with All Might at the time, and the two of them rushed over. Himiko and Hitoshi have notified Vlad King, so the teachers will be mobilising too.

Now, I have to say, I'm seriously considering ending this fic after the USJ battle and some epilogue chapters. There's a number of reasons for that:

1. I really do need more completed fics under my belt. I have a bad habit of starting stories and not finishing them, aside from one-shots, and while I have finished one fic this year (my Harry Potter/Berserk crossover Ubi Amor, Ibi Dolor), I want to get more finished.

2. My creative momentum on this story is running out, and I'll need time to recharge my batteries on it.

3. Ending it after the USJ battle is fitting, as that's where the first season of the anime ends.

4. I need time to figure out how the Sports Festival will go, as well as what to do, precisely, with a number of key characters, if I do a sequel covering those events.

I'll be honest. Lately, I have not had any inclinations to do sequels to my stories. The few I have done lately have petered out PDQ. So, it's a very real possibility that there won't be a sequel that covers the Sports Festival. I'm not saying a sequel won't happen, I'm just saying don't hold your breath for one. You'll die of a lack of air.

Still, I hope you've enjoyed what I've written so far.

No numbered annotations this time.